The United Nations will mark the 2021 International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade on 25 March under the theme “Ending Slavery’s Legacy of Racism: A Global Imperative for Justice”. Several virtual events will be organized throughout the month to commemorate the International Day.
The 2021 theme for the International Day reflects the global movement to end injustices whose roots lie in the slave trade. The theme highlights the importance of educating about the history of the transatlantic slave trade and slavery, to bring about an acknowledgment of slavery’s impact on the modern world, and action to address its long-lasting effects. The theme guides the educational outreach and remembrance activities organized by the United Nations outreach programme on slavery and the transatlantic slave trade, to mobilize action against prejudice, racism and injustice.
On 4 March, from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m., the Department of Global Communications’ outreach programme on slavery and the transatlantic slave trade, together with Lehigh University, will present an online discussion entitled “Return to the Root: Exploring Racism Through Dance”. Mark Wilson, Executive Director of Zoellner Arts Center at Lehigh University; Terry-Ann Jones, Lehigh University Director of Africana Studies; and Rafael Palacios, Artistic Director of Afro-Colombian dance company Sankofa Danzafro, will participate in the discussion. The discussion will explore the themes of systemic racism, the legacy of slavery throughout African diaspora populations and how we can participate in this discussion globally through multiple art forms. The discussion will have Spanish interpretation. Please register at https://lehigh.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_PGAkMqtNR7qdGE01pOuFvA.
The Department of Global Communications will screen the six-part series Enslaved, presented by Samuel L. Jackson, Afua Hirsch and Simcha Jacobovici. A panel discussion of the first episode, “Cultures Left Behind”, will take place online on 24 March from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Episode one will be made available in advance to those who register for the discussion. Please register at https://bit.ly/3ud7a7e.
“Still We Rise”, an online cultural event, co-organized by the Department of Global Communications, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) will take place on 25 March, from 8:45 a.m. to 10 a.m. The online event will include musical and spoken voice input, a mini-documentary, a multilingual poetry reading with diverse representation and a discussion. Please register at https://bit.ly/3s8Q7RU.
The Commemorative Plenary Meeting of the General Assembly will be held in person on 25 March from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the General Assembly Hall at United Nations Headquarters in New York. The meeting will be chaired by the President of the General Assembly and will include remarks by the United Nations Secretary‑General and Member States. Lisa M. Coleman, Senior Vice‑President for Global Inclusion and Strategic Innovation at New York University, will deliver the keynote address. Health security protocols will be observed. The commemorative meeting will be live streamed on UN Web TV at http://webtv.un.org/.
On 31 March, from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., the Department of Global Communications will organize a discussion of the documentary Bill Traylor: Chasing Ghosts. Traylor was born into slavery, lived through the period following emancipation, and witnessed the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement. The discussion will consider Traylor’s legacy, and the relationship among art, justice and the legacy of slavery. Invited panellists include Leslie Umberger, art historian and Curator of Folk and Self-taught Art at the Smithsonian American Art Museum; Jeffrey Wolf, film director; Radcliffe Bailey, contemporary American artist; Howard O. Robinson, Archivist, Alabama State University; and Richard J. Powell, John Spencer Distinguished Professor of Art and Art History, Duke University. Participants will be invited to screen the film in advance of the discussion. Please register at https://bit.ly/3uaL2uw
General Assembly Resolution 62/122 of 2007 identified 25 March as the International Day of remembrance of the victims of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade and mandated the establishment of an outreach programme on slavery and the transatlantic slave trade.
For more information, please visit www.un.org/en/events/slaveryremembranceday/ or contact Tracey Petersen, at email: petersen3@un.org.